U.S.: Death Row Exonerees Fight to Stop Executions

Joe D’Ambrosio

One day after Independence Day this summer, former death row inmate Joe D'Ambrosio celebrated his freedom by starting a Change.org petition to stop 27 executions in Ohio.

D'Ambrosio was exonerated from Ohio's death row when he was 50. He was convicted for a murder he didn't commit when he was 26. In his petition, he states that he and his co-petition starters "are some of the 9 men exonerated from Ohio's death row, proving that innocent people have been sentenced to death in our state."

The state of Ohio has scheduled 27 executions between 2017 and 2020, the 1st of which took place just weeks ago; Ronald R. Phillips's execution on July 26th marked the 1st since the botched execution of Dennis McGuire in 2014. The drug combination used to kill McGuire induced a choking sensation as a result of restricted breathing. After McGuire's 25-minute-long execution, the ordeal was called, a "failed, agonizing experiment," by his defense attorney. Similar side effects to these lethal injection drugs were reported weeks earlier during an execution that took place in Oklahoma.

The recurrence of botched executions is among the reasons why D'Ambrosio is petitioning Ohio Governor John Kasich to call off the executions scheduled to take place over the next 3 years.

Yet Ohio is moving forward with their most intensive execution schedule to date - even though over 7,000 people are calling on Governor Kasich to call it off. Many of those have spoken out against the death penalty, including James, who wrote, "We have so many people in jail that have later been found innocent. How can you support a system that has proven to be unjust?"

In Missouri, an execution is set to take place in less than 2 weeks that raises similar concerns. Marcellus Williams has been on death row since 1998, despite no DNA evidence linking him to the crime he was convicted for committing. In fact, the sole grounds for his conviction 2 decades ago were the testimonies of 2 individuals. Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty started a petition to save Marcellus on Change.org shortly after D'Ambrosio launched his in July.

Nearly 200,000 people have spoken out against the death penalty and individual executions on Change.org, resulting in 1 petition making victory in April when Governor McAuliffe of Virginia commuted the death sentence of Ivan Teleguz. As Teleguz was spared in Virginia, roughly 50,000 people were rallying to prevent the execution of 8 men in Arkansas. Governor Asa Hutchinson didn't listen even as community and faith leaders spoke out against the 8 executions scheduled to take place in a mere 10 day period, but the courts did - resulting in 4 of the 8 executions being stayed.

Right now, 26 men on Ohio's death row and Marcellus Williams in Missouri need you to take action to help prevent their executions. You can do so by signing the petitions to save them and by sharing the petitions on social media and elsewhere.

Looking for even more ways to help? Consider joining our Criminal Justice program to support petitions like these seeking to right wrongful convictions and work toward meaningful criminal justice reform.

Source: change.org, August 14, 2017

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